Pounding on the bathroom door was making the pounding in her head worse.
When Jillian opened her eyes the bathroom spun. "Stop." She groaned from her place resting on the toilet
"Jillian, I swear to god if you don't open this door we will kick it down." Sam threatened
She couldn't bring herself to stand so she crawled over to the door and fumbled to unlock the handle with her eyes closed before crawling back over to her throne.
Three sets of feet filed in and crowded around her in the small bathroom.
Paul stroked her hair back, "Babe, you can't lock yourself in here. What if something happened?"
"Then you would really break the door down," she grumbled
"Very funny." Embry scoffed, "Shut the door all you want but just don't lock it."
"We want to be here when you need us. Even if it's just to hold your hair back." Paul told her smiling, "We can't make any of this better but we can be here for you."
"Thank you, can you help me get to bed? I really need a nap."
Sam smiled as he lifted her up, "Brush your teeth first, or you'll regret it when you wake up later."
She did as she was told and then Sam lifted her back up into his arms. They all followed them to the bedroom but Embry was the only one to crawl into bed with her.
"We need to go check on Quil and Jacob."
Her eyes were already closing, "Why?"
Paul stroked her hair, "We've been keeping an eye on them both."
"But why?"
"We think they're going to change. We don't want them to be alone when they do."
A ghost of a smile crossed her lips, "That's so sweet."
"Embry is going to stay here with you, but if you need anything tell him to call us."
She nodded and cuddled deeper into Embry's arms.
They placed a kiss on her minty lips and left the room as quickly and quietly as they could.
After the door shut her mind started to drift off into nothingness. Exhaustion taking over as Embry held her close.
Her mind drifted into nothingness as her body started to go numb with sleep.
A light in the distance flickered and as it seemed to approach her position.
When the light became too intense she shut her eyes and found herself in front of a blazing fire on first beach under the stars.
Her hands sank in the sand and she felt a sudden warmth surround her, "Mommy!"
Small arms encircled her neck and hugged her with a force to be reckoned with.
Jillian's heart was pounding, Mommy? She had no idea what was going on but when she looked down she saw a small boy in her arms with a bright smile shining up at her and eyes that sparkled. Those eyes rang a bell and when she realized whose eyes those were, she nearly sobbed. Those eyes belonged to Embry. They shinned with the same love and mischief under the stars as their first date.
"Mommy. Daddies are being mean!"
She smiled, "How is dad-daddy being mean?"
He turned and pointed at Embry and Sam who were grinning with wide smiles, "They were tickling me!" he shrieked
"Don't forget to tell your mamma who started that tickle war!" Embry told the little boy
Sam smiled and plopped down next to her, "Jilly, glad you've joined us from your nap."
She smiled, "Well when he tackled me with a hug I couldn't keep my eyes closed at more."
"Fin, did you wake your mommy up?" Sam asked him as he tugged the little boy onto his lap
"No. She was awake already." He claimed
She couldn't help herself she laughed at the adorable little boy.
"Fin, go find your sister and your other dads, and your aunty."
The boy nodded and jogged off into the distance where she could hear others laughing, "Whose he going to get?"
Sam smiled, "His dad's and his aunt Leah."
She swallowed hard, "Who are his dad's? And who is Leah?"
Sam laughed and Embry joined in sitting on her other side, "Don't play stupid babe."
"He's going to get Jared, Paul, an…."
The bright light seemed to surround them all sucking away the darkness of the night around them.
When she opened her eyes again she was staring up at the ceiling and listening to Embry snore loudly beside her.
She let out a sigh as she sat up cautiously. When she didn't feel a sudden rush of nausea she relaxed against the pillows and ran her fingers through Embry's hair.
Her mind wandered back to the adorable little boy with Embry's eyes and her bright smile. Her hand rubbed slow circles on her little baby bump.
She knew that this baby wasn't his, but one day would there be a baby with his eyes? She felt her heartbeat slowing and a smile lit her face.
To her left, Embry let out a loud snore and she couldn't help but smile bigger. She ran her fingers through his hair again and snuggled closer. This was just the start of everything, and she was excited to see where their lives would go.
"Do you smell that?" Paul growled, "Smells like a god damned leach."
"Cullen's?"
Sam shook his muzzle, "No. It is different. Still a leach."
"Maybe two," Jared added in turning his head to the right, "Smell's like another leach came through here too."
"Fuck." Paul trotted around the area, "It's definitely a different leach and it looks like this trail is headed toward Forks."
Jared growled, "This trail is headed toward the beach."
"Fuck. Paul, I want you to follow the trail toward Forks. See where it goes." He shot a look at Jared, "I want you to follow this trail to the beach. See what you can find. I'm going to run patrol around the area."
With a curt nod, they darted off to complete their assignments.
Twenty minutes into the patrol Sam noticed that the sky was growing dark and the wind was beginning to whip around the trees. He continued to run even as the rain started and the scents in the air started to grow stronger before they began to engulf his every thought.
A sickly sweet scent trailed down deeper into the forest and without thinking Sam followed it. He ran quicker and quicker as it grew stronger. He knew he was growing close when he could barely breathe without wanting to vomit. The air was sweet and smelled like bleach and floor cleaner the closer he got to the cliffs.
Sam neared a clearing before the edge fell into the ocean filled with deep green grass and towering trees. He was immediately and fully surrounded by the leach's scent in the air. He crouched low to the ground and watched the tree line close as he listened.
There were no birds singing, bugs calling for their lovers, just the wind howling and screaming through the branches.
Underneath the whipping wind, there was the snapping of a twig.
Sam swung his body around and out of the corner of his eyes, he could see a white blur along the trees. The bleach and sugar smell permeated the air as even the wind seemed to grow silent.
A figure appeared from the tree line moving quickly.
A growl full of rage rumbled from Sam's chest and filled the silence between them.
The leach approached slowly with his hands raised. He smiled softly, drawing more attention to his blood-red eyes.
Acting on instinct Sam lunged and aimed for the beast's throat. Just when he thought his teeth were going to wrap around its throat Sam felt cold finger digging into his fur and throwing him back.
"Now. Now. Down boy." The thing with a man's face spoke, "I'm not here to hurt you."
Sam growled, 'Yeah fucking right.'
He smiled, "Ah. Yes. I forget that you're incapable of human speech when you're this way," He waved his hand around, "I've been watching you. For a long time now. I'm surprised it took you this long to find me."
Sam looked to the sky and let out a loud howl. It echoed through the trees and he hoped that Paul and Jared would hear it. He hoped they would come to back him up.
The leach moved in a flash and was standing only a few feet away, "Why the hell did you have to go and do that." He sighed, "Fucking dog. I'm not here for you. I'm here for Jillian."
Sam attempted to stand when he heard his mate's name but winced when his front paw touched the ground. He settled for a low growl instead and bared his teeth.
It laughed again, "We're old…" he stopped and rubbed his face for a moment, "We're old friends. I knew her when I was in Texas."
He paced around looking delighted, "I was heartbroken when she left me. We were very close. You see she was traveling through Texas to paint and write and whatever else, when I found her in a little coffee shop near the beach."
It crouched down and grinned, "I was human at the time but I remember her smile. She lit up the room and her laugh was contagious. It was beautiful to find someone so full of life out of the blue."
Sam lunged forward again and snapped his teeth the best he could. He was waiting for his paw to heal just a little while this leach ranted about his mate.
"I watched her for a long time. I went to the beach when she did and I went for coffee when she did. I fell in love."
Sam's growl rippled through the air. He could hear Paul and Jared in his mind now, they were approaching as fast as they could. "Quiet you fucks! The leach is here. Don't let him hear you."
They were silent watching through Sam's eyes as the leach paced and talked.
"I fell in love with the way her skin felt on mine when we brushed hands. When she slept I fell in love with her soft snore." His demeanor went from love to rage without a moment's notice, "Just as I had thought of the perfect thing to say to express my love and admiration she was gone."
His rage echoed through the trees as he yelled, "That fucking heartless cunt up and left before I could tell her how I felt."
"This guy is fucking crazy," Jared whispered, "Don't worry Sam we're almost there. Just hang on."
Paul grunted and pushed faster falling in step beside Jared. They were close now, just a few minutes away and they would be able to sink their teeth into this nut job.
The leach stopped, "I hear them. They're fast." He took a step away from Sam now, "Don't worry little wolf. I won't be here long. I'll be taking what's mine and then we'll be gone like we were never even here."
He gave a wicked grin as he stepped further away, "I won't make you watch. I'll drain her blood dry and that filthy cunt will die alone."
As Jared and Paul sprinted into the small clearing he was gone. Diving over the edge of the cliff.
"Go! Follow him!" Sam screamed, "Don't let him get away!"
They didn't need to be told twice. They ran for the edge and dove over into the rushing water below them.
They couldn't see the leach in the murky cold water, but they would find him, they had to.
